The Roshua Review August 2015 | Page 18

The Pinkprint Tour: Nicki Minaj w/ Meek Mill, Rae Sremmund, Dej Loaf and Tinashe

After reading many reviews and predictions calling Nicki Minaj’s “The Pinkprint Tour” one of the best hip hop lineups of the summer, I had no choice but to go and see it for myself. Featuring rising artists such as Dej Loaf, Tinashe and Rae Sremmund to the recently controversial Meek Mill and hip hop’s leading lady Nicki Minaj, it wasn’t very surprising for me to hear these reviews. After lucking out and getting front row tickets to the Nicki’s show at First Midwest Bank Amphitheater in the south suburbs of Chicago, I was more than ready to see what all the talk was about.

The evening begun with the small yet powerful Dej Loaf taking the stage. Her set was

quite short; about 20 minutes. I was expecting a little more given that she had just released her first EP, titled #AndSeeThatsTheThing, but she managed to perform one of my current favorites, “Back Up” featuring Big Sean and even entered the crowd while performing it. After her followed one of my favorite up and coming acts, Tinashe, who hit the stage with her energetic dance moves and platinum jackets, performing her current single “All Hands On Deck.” Riding on the coattails of her successful freshman album Aquarius, Tinashe performed all of my personal favorites: from “How Many Times” featuring Future to her smash hit single “2 On” featuring Schoolboy Q. I would say that Tinashe delivered my favorite performance out of the openers, and left me hoping that she continues her Aquarius tour after finishing up The Pinkprint Tour. Following Tinashe came Rae Sremmund who gave a fun performance. Though there wasn’t much to the production besides customized gear being thrown into the crowd and flashing lights, the duo did a great job at hyping up the crowd and preparing us for Nicki to hit the stage. After them came the infamous Meek Mill, who surprised me with an decent performance. Though his set was peppered with a good amount of shade clearly directed at Drake, he did a good job at reminding me of all the bops that he’s created, from “Amen” (excluding Drake’s verse of course) to “House Party,” and even broke away from his set to let his DJ take control and play the Chicago favorites.

Preceding her boyfriend came Nicki, who took the stage by storm immediately. She opened with her slow and emotional song, “I Lied,” and after a swift outfit change reappeared to hit the crowd with all of my personal favorites: “Feeling Myself,” “Only,” “Beez In The Trap,” and “Truffle Butter” to name a few. Her choreography and dancers were on point, vocals were bomb, and she did an amazing job at moving around the stage. Though we were in one of the biggest venues in Chicagoland, it was surprising to me who close she felt to the crowd. At one point for about 20 minutes, she did nothing but test the audience on her old songs to see if we knew them, dancing with us as we recited the lyrics to oldies such as “Jump Off ’07” and “Did It On ‘Em.” The show left me amazed, reigniting my love for her music and her.

Overall, Nicki and her openers gave a great show. As the many reviews said, the lineup

was absolutely incredible and lived up to my high expectations. This tour solidified Nicki’s growth and success, ultimately proving her status as the top female rapper in the game.